Monday, May 19, 2014

It begins! In July, the first of the Dungeons & Dragons 5th edition physical products (Or D&D Next) start releasing, starting with a Starter Set.

And, of course, the interwebs are abuzz with comments how this new version will save/destroy the tabletop gaming industry. Ahh, fandom....

I, for one, am hopeful for this new ruleset. Having been in on the playtest, I liked a lot of what I saw in those rules. Definitely a de-emphasis on miniatures and more on exploration and roleplay. I noticed in the description for the starter set no mention of maps or counters being included, so it seems this has continued into the final product.

I am intrigued, however, by the titling of this line. "D&D" is the prominent title on the box/books, with the actual words "Dungeons & Dragons" in much smaller print farther down the cover image. I imagine some sort of market research is in play here, possibly with "D&D" generating more nostalgia than the full title. Anyone with real info willing to share?